Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPADS)

In News 

  • Recently, the United States approved a $200-million arms package for Ukraine, which would include US-made Stinger Missiles, which are a type of shoulder-fired Man-Portable Air-Defence Systems (MANPADS)

What are MANPADS?

  • Man-Portable Air-Defence Systems are short-range, lightweight and portable surface-to-air missiles that can be fired by individuals or small groups to destroy aircraft or helicopters. 
  • They help shield troops from aerial attacks and are most effective in targeting low-flying aircrafts. 
    • MANPATs or Man-Portable Anti-Tank Systems work in a similar manner but are used to destroy or incapacitate military tanks.
  • MANPADS can be shoulder-fired, launched from atop a ground-vehicle, fired from a tripod or stand, and from a helicopter or boat. 
  • Features 
    • Weighing anywhere between 10 to 20 kilograms and not being longer than 1.8 metres.
      • They are fairly lightweight as compared to other elaborate weapon systems, making them easy to operate by individual soldiers. 
      • Operating MANPADS requires substantially less training.
    • MANPADS have a maximum range of 8 kilometres and can engage targets at altitudes of 4.5 km.
    • Most MANPADS have passive or ‘fire and forget’ guidance systems, meaning the operator is not required to guide the missile to its target, enabling them to run and relocate immediately after firing
    • The missile stays locked-on to the targeted object, not requiring active guidance from the soldier. 
      • The missiles are fitted with Infrared (IR) seekers that identify and target the airborne vehicle through heat radiation being emitted by the latter.

Earlier instances of usage 

  • The first MANPADS were introduced by the United States and Soviet Union in the 1960s.
    •  Russian and U.S. MANPADS were also used during the Vietnam war.
  • Countries such as India, Pakistan, Germany, U.K,Turkey and Israel have also used MANPADS in their defence efforts. 
    • As of 2019, 20 countries had developed the wherewithal to manufacture MANPADS and together made 1 million such systems for defence and export purposes.  

 Common variants of MANPADs

  • The most common make of MANPADs is the U.S.-made Stinger missiles. 
    • These weigh about 15 kg, have a range of 4,800 metres or 4.8 km, and can engage low-flying aircrafts at an altitude of 3,800 metres. 
    • They have a passive guidance system, which uses infrared technology. 
    • Stringers have been sent or are currently being sent to Ukraine by the US, Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark. 
  • Stinger’s Russian or Soviet-made counterparts are the Igla MANPADS, which also employ Infrared technology. 
    • They were used in Iraq when it was invaded by the U.S. in 2003.
    •  They have also been used by India, for instance,  as part of the Operation Trishul Shakti of 1992, during the Siachen conflict. 
  • Starstreak, the British army’s equivalent of the Stinger missiles, have also been used in the past.
    •  Starstreak MANPADs have an active guidance system which uses a laser beam and needs the operator till the missile hits, but they offer a longer range (7 km) as compared to Stingers and are high-velocity systems. 
  • Sweden makes the RBS-70 MANPADS series, which also uses laser beam technology, while China’s version, FN-6, is akin to their Stinger.

Source:TH

 

Other News of the Day

In News Every year 15th March is celebrated as the World Consumer Rights Day. About the day History: World Consumer Rights Day was inspired by President John F Kennedy, who sent a special message to the US Congress on 15th March 1962, in which he formally addressed the issue of consumer rights. He was the...
Read More

 In Context  M.N. Srinivas, an eminent social anthropologist, produced a detailed explanation of the phenomenon of Sanskritization in ‘A Note on Sanskritization and Westernisation (Far Eastern Quarterly, 1956)’. What is Sanskritisation? Sanskritisation referred to the lower castes’ adoption of the practices and rites of the locally dominant caste in a particular region, which included Brahmin...
Read More

In  News  India’s maternal mortality ratio (MMR) has improved to 103 in 2017-19, from 113 in 2016-18 as per a special bulletin released by the Registrar General of India. India is all set to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target of Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) of 70 maternal deaths per lakh live births by 2030...
Read More

In News  Recently, the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers has released an Approach paper for the Draft National Policy for the Medical Devices, 2022. Salient features of Policy  Regulatory streamlining in order to optimise regulatory processes and multiplicity of agencies for enhanced ease of doing business, along with harmonisation with global standards to ensure standardisation....
Read More

In News The Sikkim government is set to announce a scheme to install vending machines to dispense sanitary napkins. Bahini Scheme Objective: To provide free sanitary pads in all its 210 secondary and senior secondary government schools across the state. Aim:  Providing 100 percent access to free and safe sanitary pads to secondary and senior...
Read More

In Context  The vast scope and potential of blockchain technology has attracted the gaming industry over the past few years.  With the success that CryptoKitties has garnered, more blockchain games, such as Axie Infinity, have now been introduced. What is Blockchain? Blockchain is a decentralised database that stores information. It relies on technology that allows...
Read More

In News Recently, Ukrainian police have accused Russian forces of launching phosphorous bomb attacks in the eastern regions of Lugansk & and Donetsk, collectively called the Donbas. About International law prohibits the use of white phosphorus shells in heavily populated civilian areas but allows them in open spaces to be used as cover for troops....
Read More

In News The PM paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi on the 92nd anniversary of Dandi March. Dandi March It is also known as Salt Satyagraha and marked the first step of the Civil Disobedience movement. Reasons behind the launch of Dandi March: Simon Commission: No Indian was included in it despite protests by Congress and...
Read More

Daily Current Affairs - March 14, 2022

In News  Recently, the United States, the European Union, Britain, Canada and Japan were due to move jointly to revoke Russia’s “most favoured nation” (MFN) status over its invasion of Ukraine. What is ‘Most Favoured Nation’(MFN) status? The World Trade Organisation’s 164 members commit to treating other members equally so...
Read More

In News Recently, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) launched the ‘India Water Pitch-Pilot-Scale Start-up Challenge’ under the Ministry's Atal mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 2.0.  About Aim:  To empower startups in the water/ used-water sector to grow through innovation and design that will drive sustainable...
Read More

In News  Centre has released over 2,221 crore rupees to Bihar, Karnataka, and West Bengal for providing grants to the Rural Local Bodies. This Grant-in-aid is the 2nd instalment of Tied grants to the State of Bihar and Untied grant to the States of Karnataka and West Bengal of the...
Read More

In News The slowdown in the economy in the wake of the COVID seems to have hit the MSME sector the most despite a host of loan restructuring schemes and packages announced by the Reserve Bank of India and the government. About Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of MSMEs, or loans...
Read More

In News A recent analysis from the International Energy Agency (IEA) has stated that India used more coal power in 2021 than 2020, which could delay its climate goals. Key Findings: India Rising Trend:  India used 13 percent more coal to generate electricity in 2021 than the previous year, given...
Read More

In News  Recently, the Prime Minister of India dedicated the new complex building of Rashtriya Raksha University- RRU Gandhinagar to the nation.  About Rashtriya Raksha University (RRU) Government set up a national police university named Rashtriya Raksha University by upgrading the Raksha Shakti University which was established by the Government...
Read More

 In News:  The Union government plans to open the villages along the Chinese border for tourists under the Vibrant Village programme announced in the Union Budget 2022-23. About Vibrant Villages Programme  The Union Budget 2022-23 has announced that villages on the northern border will be  covered under the new Vibrant...
Read More

In News The government has appointed former finance secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey as chairman of the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) for a period of three years. National Financial Reporting Authority Regulatory Body: It is a regulatory body constituted by the Government of India under Sub Section (1) of section...
Read More

In News  Recently, the Union Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology visited the Gallium Nitride Ecosystem Enabling Centre and Incubator ( GEECI ) facility at the prestigious Indian Institute of Sciences (IISc), Bengaluru.  The facility has been jointly set up by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology...
Read More

In News The Odisha government has proposed to ban movement of mechanized fishing boats in Mangalajodi area on the banks of Chilika Lake. Chilika Lake It is Asia’s largest and world’s second-largest brackish water lagoon after The New Caledonian barrier reef. A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated...
Read More